MDC has insisted it will have reforms in place BEFORE the elections - not even one and time is up N garikai

After years of claiming that MDC will force Zanu PF to implement the democratic reforms necessary for free and fair elections, thus tie the proverbial bell round the cat’s neck; it is now clear MDC was just posturing. MDC leaders are scraping the bottom of the barrel in a desperate bid keep up the facade they will get the reforms implemented and deliver the free and fair election!

“The MDC-T and MDC Alliance leader Nelson Chamisa has threatened to mobilise the opposition party's supporters to picket at the Zimbabwe Electoral Commission (Zec) head office starting tomorrow until July 30 if the electoral management body fails to address their demands for transparency in the printing of ballot material by end of business today,” reported Bulawayo 24.

“MDC Alliance co-principal Tendai Biti confirmed the development yesterday, saying they had started mobilising mobile toilets and tents for the thousands of opposition supporters expected to participate in the vigil.”

MDC leaders have known all along that Zanu PF rigs elections and with not even one reform in place the regime will rig these elections. MDC leaders have decided to participate in these elections regardless because they are after the few gravy train seats Zanu PF gives away as David Coltart, MDC senator and minister in the GNU, has readily admitted.

"The worst aspect for me about the failure to agree a coalition was that both MDCs couldn't now do the obvious - withdraw from the (2013) elections," he wrote in his recent book.

"The electoral process was so flawed, so illegal, that the only logical step was to withdraw, which would compel SADC to hold Zanu PF to account. But such was the distrust between the MDC-T and MDC-N that neither could withdraw for fear that the other would remain in the elections, winning seats and giving the process credibility."

Of course, MDC leaders would never admit that greed has the better of them (Coltart must have agonised in making the admission in his book and has been very careful never to repeat publicly ever again). They have sort to hide their greed behind a smoke screen, they have maintained MDC will force ZEC and Zanu PF to implement all the reforms they are demanding BEFORE elections are held hence they insistence that MDC will never boycott the elections.

Zanu PF and ZEC have called MDC leaders’ bluff and for the last five years have stubbornly refused to given in to even one of the MDC’s demands. Not one!

With exactly two weeks to go to voting day, reality is dawning on even the most blind-as-mole MDC supporters that these elections are going ahead with not even one reform in place. The MDC leaders’ smoke screen is clearing like the morning mist under the hot Africa sun!

“We will be leading from the front, we will be living on the streets. We are not going to allow this election to be stolen. They can kill us. We are prepared to die for free, fair and credible elections. We have given Zec a deadline and if they don't address the issues raised in the petition by Monday, then we will be living on the streets," Biti said.

"We have said this over and over again, there will be no voting. Some people talk about us boycotting the election, I don't know where they get that. We are not boycotting, there will be no election."

Desperate people do desperate things! MDC leaders are desperate to keep their blind-as-mole supporters on board, camping outside ZEC offices is just a desperate gimmick to make their supporters believe all the reforms will finally be implemented and the elections will be free, fair and credible. No doubt, there will be many blind-as-mole supporters who will believe this nonsense – they are desperate for something to believe in and will clatch at straws.

ZEC will ignore the 24 hour deadline. MDC leaders and their supporters will camp outside ZEC offices. Zanu PF will ignore them. If there is going to be any violence, I would not be surprised that it would be MDC who would have provoked it, just to get some attention.

“We are prepared to die for free, fair and credible elections,” said Tendai Biti. Oh please, spare us the Tabasco sauce!

You had the golden opportunity to implement the democratic reforms which would have delivered free and fair elections during the GNU. You and your MDC friends failed to implement even one reform in five years. You wasted these years tripping over each other competing for the honour to praise Robert Mugabe.

"Mugabe is unflappable! He is the fountain of wisdom! He is the father of the nation!" sung Biti.

The tyrant has complete destroyed Zimbabwe's economy forcing unemployment to soar to dizzying heights of 90%, basic services such as clean running water and health care have all but collapsed, ¾ of our people are living in abject poverty, etc., etc. Where is the fountain of wisdom in that?

Some father of the nation he has turned out to be given he has murdered over 30 000 innocent Zimbabweans to create and retain this de facto one-party cum one-man dictatorship.

These elections should not be taking place, not without the reforms in place; the only reasons they are taking place is because of MDC leaders’ greed. Chamisa and company have insisted they will get the reforms implemented, a smoke screen to hide their greed. With just two weeks left to voting day, it is clear no reforms will ever be implemented, the smoke screen has cleared and Zimbabweans must now wake up to the reality that Zanu PF is going to rig these elections.

Whilst there is nothing people do now to stop these elections going ahead; what we can do now is refused to take any part in these flawed elections. Our participation will not change the outcome, a landslide victory for Zanu PF; what it does is give the elections process some modicum of credibility, as Coltart rightly acknowledge above.

We, the long suffering ordinary Zimbabweans, must make is clear here and now, not after the voting day, that we did not approve the elections going ahead with no reforms in place. We never subscribed to MDC leaders’ nonsense that they will get Zanu PF to implement the reforms before the elections, belling the cat.

These elections are not free, fair and credible and they must therefore be declared null and void.